Dear Fashion Diary

Today we woke up to sunshine outdoors and limelight online: Amelia's Magazine, one of our all-time favourite indie mags, published an interview about the story behind the Dear Fashion Journal on their website today. Click here to read it!

But what is that book in the picture? Why is the article is titled "Dear Fashion Diary"...? Well,  Dear Fashion Diary is the latest project of Emmi (our editor-in-chief) and Laura de Jong, Emmi's friend and colleague and the founder of Free Fashion Challenge. Yes, it's a crime that we have not told you about the diary yet although it's been in stores world wide already since September, but before you call the police, give us a chance to tell you more about it now. (Better late than never, eh?)

Emmi and Laura met during their studies in the the Amsterdam Fashion Institute, and got to know each other during the Free Fashion Challenge when they spend a year without shopping. After the challenge, the girls decided to collaborate in hopes of inspiring others to discover the creativity of fashion outside the cycle of consumption. When Emmi started working on the Dear Fashion Journal, the girls started meeting up for brainstorm sessions in cafes, libraries and train stations. Time passed, the journal was published and it was time for something new. When BIS Publishers offered Emmi a chance to make a creative fashion diary, there was no doubt who she would ask to collaborate with her. So the girls kicked off a hectic period of 4 months, working during the days and leading a double life as book makers at night!

Next to their nearly identical names, Dear Fashion Diary and Journal share the same sustainable ideology: the better you know your personal taste and style, the smarter shopper you can become and the less impulsive, silly buys you will make. Whereas the journal is a magazine to read, the diary is an active DIY book that will let you document your fashion life, discover your taste and become your own style guru. It is your own personal collection of inspiration, leading you off the beaten tracks of fashion with over 50 creative assignments from making a wardrobe inventory to creating your own colour palette and analysing your signature items.

Dear Fashion Diary can be found in selected bookstores around the world and can also be ordered through Amazon or on the publisher's website here. In the UK, you can find it at Tate Modern, Podshop, Blackwells, Rizzoli Bookshop and Waterstones.

Curious to read more about the process behind the diary? Check Emmi's personal blog, where she wrote about the diary and the its launch event or follow the Diary on Facebook or Twitter!

Column: Dear holes

Are you a lazy fixer of loose buttons and holes on your clothes? No worries, for you are not the only one! Read the first "Dear..."-column of Emmi, our editor-in-chief, on Oh Marie! magazine, get a doze of Martha Stewart's DIY energy and grab that needle! 

Dear holes,

When it comes to fashion, I tend to stick to the safe side. I have made enough mistakes  to have learned what I like and what looks good on me (although these two don’t always go hand in hand). I say no to white jeans, to leggings and beige colours and welcome anything that is cozy, girly, dark blue or bronze with open arms! I can spend one honeymoon after another with my favourite outfits, wearing the same things in rotation for weeks until something forces me to change the routine. You know, having to do the laundry, dress according to what the weatherman says or change just for the sake of it, to prove yourself that the clothes aren’t glued on you. However, recently I have changed my personal dress code because of something else. Something very, very small that somehow ended up being an annoyingly big deal; a hole in my favourite cardigan! Combined with my utter laziness, that tiny rip has suddenly become the biggest factor in my daily choice of outfits. I don’t let trends dictate what I wear - I let holes do it instead! 
...read the rest here (in Dutch or English): Dear holes - Oh Marie!

PS. Already noticed that tab called "Free downloads" on top of the page...? Well, that's exactly what it is: a page for you to download stuff without any cost! Click the link and get a free illustrated darning guide for dummies, print it out, share it or send it to someone who needs a subtle hint!